An Admission of Love
by KibaCanLickMe
Summary: Hanabi worries for Sasuke on the eve of his 26th birthday.


Written for the Ships50 community on LJ.

**Title: An Admission of Love**

**Fandom: Naruto**

**Characters: Hanabi & Sasuke**

**Prompt: #13 – Tomorrow**

**Word Count: 1,816**

**Rating: K**

**Warning/Spoilers: None that I noticed**

**Summary: Hanabi worries about Sasuke on the eve of his 26****th**** birthday.**

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At just 22 years old Hyuga Hanabi knows she is young. However, she isn't young for a ninja. She knows that for a ninja she's actually nearing her twilight years. Most ninja die before the age of 26; the magical cutoff date for the shinobi lifespan. So at 22 she's fast approaching her end of days. She knows the "average" lifespan of a ninja is 26, but she also knows how misleading that number actually is, because at 22 years of age Hanabi has seen a great deal and knows a lot of things. As the former heir of the Hyuga clan, back before her sister caught the eye of a certain future Hokage and developed a backbone of her own, she was trained in all things Konoha and she knows what really happens in a shinobi village. The largest number of shinobi casualties come in the form of first year genin; the most gung-ho of the shinobi world, they are full of excitement and righteous motivation they are also the least experienced and most lacking in skill and battle prowess. As a result, most shinobi reach the end of their road before the age of 14. But 26 is the average; they claim. Hanabi isn't sure if it's just because that's how it is, or because claiming the "average" shinobi lives to the ancient age of 26 encourages new recruits to sign up and give their lives for the village. But the fact is the "average" is skewed. Oh sure, 26 is the "average" but only because of the ripe old ages of the most elite. Chiyo and Ebiso of Suna, Koharu, Sarutobi Hiruzen, and Danzo of Konoha, as well as Salamander Hanzou of Ame, and other legendary ninja manage to live well past 60 and bump that "average" all the way up to 26 and the world is fooled into thinking that ninja make it into their late 20's despite the fact that anyone older than 26 in the ninja field is far from average. Hanabi knows all of this, and yet 26 is the number she can't get out of her head.

That damn 26, it bobbles around in her brain knocking things around, bringing out her fears and worries and causing her to doubt. And she's not used to doubting him; in fact doubt in regards to him has never before crossed her mind. Even though she knows he's so far from "average" that despite those incredible eyes of his he wouldn't be able to hit it with a kunai, and even though she knows that today he's still 25, she also knows that tomorrow, Uchiha Sasuke will be 26. So even though it's unreasonable, Hanabi is filled with uneasiness and apprehension. Tomorrow he'll be 26 and he's away on a mission out of the village, due back yesterday he has yet to return, which leaves him separated from her. As senseless as it is she can't help but wish she was by his side to protect and watch over him. As futile as it is, and as helpless as she feels, the Hyuga ex-heir has spent the past three days at Konoha's gate with her Byakugan activated, noticing anything that moves even the slightest within her 15 mile radius. She'd exhausted herself but she couldn't bring her mind around to caring. If something happened to him Hanabi didn't know what she would do. It was going on the night of the third day when her chakra gave out and a crushed Hyuga collapsed on bench and continued staring towards the gate despondently.

"Imouto!" Hinata called to her sister from across the street but she might as well have been 1000 miles away for all the youngest Hyuga noticed. Trapped deep in the world of her own mind where the only things that mattered were Uchiha Sasuke, tomorrow, and that cursed 26, Hanabi didn't even flinch when her older sister sat down on the bench beside her.

"Imouto," Hinata finally resorted to shaking the girl back to the real world. "Nabi-chan, what are you doing? You've been on this bench for days and you haven't even eaten. Otousan is worried about you; he wants you to come home."

Hanabi looked warily at her older sister; she was not leaving this bench unless Sasuke was walking beside her, yet she couldn't exactly figure out why. When had her feelings for the icy Uchiha gotten so deep? In the beginning he'd been a way to blow of some steam, get a quick release, and go back about her usual business, but now… Now he was important to her, one of her precious people, maybe the most precious. Sneaking around once week to meet him had turned into sneaking around several times a day just to be with him and even if she'd never said it to him, or heard him say it to her, she was pretty sure she was hopelessly in love with him.

"I'm not going home," she stated simply but with an air of finality that had Hinata wincing. It was the older girl who would have to face Hiashi's wrath and bear the burden of his ire if Hanabi refused to obey his orders, and while most days she would feel guilty about that and acquiesce, today she could not. Tomorrow was July 23, tomorrow Sasuke would turn 26, and today he was all alone without her to protect him. She couldn't leave the gate because today he might come back so tomorrow could turn out okay.

Hinata nodded, knowing from the stiff lip and furrowed brow that Hanabi had made up her mind. She wouldn't try to sway her, and yet she made no move to leave.

"Who are you waiting for?" Hinata asked quietly, genuinely interested in who could be causing her sister such distress. Oh there were rumors that her sister was having secret dalliances with an unknown man but nobody knew who, and Hinata had never put much stock in gossip anyway. But if Hanabi was out here starving herself and exhausting her chakra coils perhaps there was some truth to the chatter.

"Uchiha Sasuke," Hanabi spoke without thinking; her mind so focused on the man and his upcoming birthday that it just slipped out. Instantly she regretted it. She had been sneaking around covertly with the man for over two years with only two people finding out, one because nothing could fool that damn Inuzuka's nose and the other because her cousin was a friggen nosey bastard, and now she'd thrown it all away in an instant. As heir, Hinata would have to tell their father and he would insist she end the relationship. The Hyuga bloodline could not be sullied with DNA from the Uchiha clan, and Uchiha Sasuke was pretty much the only man in the entire Hidden Leaf Village that had been forbidden to her. Unfortunately, though she was loathe to admit it, she'd fallen in love with him anyway and now she'd die before she gave up being with him.

Tomorrow he would be 26 though, so maybe this was all moot, because dating a dead man was impossible right?

To Hinata's credit she did not immediately object to the unholy union or renounce her only sister in the street, but just managed to keep the look of shock off her face before bursting out in a fit of laughter.

"Why are you laughing? I love him," Hanabi shouted, admitting her feelings out loud for the first time.

"Because you have always been father's favorite; his pride and joy, always doing what is expected of a Hyuga and following directions while I have been the opposite and disappointed him at every turn. But if he ever finds out about this he might actually start to like Naruto for the simple reason that he is not Sasuke."

Hanabi stared at her sister stupefied. Had Hinata just said "if"? Was her Oneesan really going to keep her secret for her?

"You're not going to tell?"

"No, of course I'm not going to tell," Hinata chuckled softly. "I wish you happiness imouto, and if Sasuke makes you happy then I am happy for you. Though judging by the past three days I can't say I think you are."

"Tomorrow is his birthday," Hanabi offered as justification for her misery, but her sister only continued looking confused.

"He's turning 26," she continued, starting to feel flustered.

"So?"

"So? So he's turning 26, tomorrow, and that's the "average" life span of a shinobi. Tomorrow he'll be 26 and I'm not there to keep him safe. Tomorrow he turns 26 and he could die and never know how much I'm in love with him!" she howled.

Hanabi had completely lost the cool detached demeanor she was famous for, her frazzled nerves had snapped. Nobody understood; if something happened to Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuga Hanabi would be broken beyond repair. Except looking at her usually calm sister lose it at the front gates of Konoha, Hinata did understand and so she did the only thing she could think of and pulled her baby sister into her comfortingly warm embrace. Shocked by the sudden contact Hanabi started to sob. Her tiny body clung to Hinata as her only lifeboat in the sea of uncertainty that tomorrow was bringing her way. Completely wrapped up in her sister's arms she could focus on nothing else.

"Yo," a smooth deep baritone cut through the sound of her sobbing and stopped her tears cold. "Is something wrong?"

"No," Hinata said, giving the stoic man a small smile before disappearing back to the Hyuga compound.

"Sasuke," Hanabi looked up at the man she had been sure was dead, and gazing into the inky darkness of his eyes all her troubles melted away. Such was the presence of Uchiha Sasuke that when faced with the man himself one could never doubt he'd live well past the age of 26 and Hanabi cursed herself for ever thinking otherwise.

"I love you," she said softly, knowing he would be okay but wanting him to know it just the same.

A cocky smirk appeared on his face along with a mischievous twinkle in his eye as he walked closer to her, "What was that you said? I didn't quite catch it."

"I love you, Uchiha Sasuke. I. Love. You." She shouted loud enough for people passing by to hear.

"Good," he answered her. "Because I love you too."

After kissing her soundly on the main street of Konoha, Sasuke took her hand in his and the two of them walked proudly down the street together. If 26 couldn't take her man away, Hanabi would be damned if she let Hyuga Hiashi do it.

Tomorrow Uchiha Sasuke would turn 26, but that no longer mattered because today he was here with her and neither of them had ever been average.

A/N: Please review, if you liked it or you didn't I would love to know. As far as I'm concerned any review whether negative or positive is just like getting candy, and who doesn't love candy?


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